Food & Diet, features and articles | Educational Science

Jul 31, 2011

Will Bill Clinton Turn You into a Vegan?

Former President Bill Clinton dropped another bombshell confession last week on CNN with the admission that he is... and I hope you are sitting down for this... a vegan. He has tried tofu, tempeh and seitan, and he has inhaled. And the results have been spectacular: Clinton, who had quadruple...

Jun 30, 2011

Study Finds Why We Crave Chips & Fries

It's hard to eat just one potato chip, and a new study may explain why. Fatty foods like chips and fries trigger the body to produce chemicals much like those found in marijuana, researchers report today (July 4) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). These...

Jun 30, 2011

The Five Healthiest Backyard Weeds

Do you have the summer gardening blues? Has the heat wave turned your cucumbers vines into rope and left your tomatoes as brown as the cracked dirt they're growing in? Fear not. You likely have weeds in your garden or in your neighborhood that are striving in the heat and...

May 31, 2011

Experts Yo-Yo on Health Benefits of Yo-Yo Diet

Losing weight and gaining it right back again is better for your health than remaining obese, according to a new study in mice. The findings suggest so-called yo-yo dieting is not as bad for your health as once thought. Mice in the study that were put on a yo-yo diet...

Apr 30, 2011

Preschoolers Already Think Thin is Beautiful

Kids as young as 4 think thin is beautiful, suggesting that media associations of thinness with beauty sink in early. The findings, published in March in the journal Body Image, aren't the first to show that kids develop opinions on body weight early. One study, published in 2010 in the...

Apr 30, 2011

Energy Drinks Not for Kids, Pediatricians Warn

Energy drinks — sweet drinks containing caffeine and often herbal supplements — have been drawing scrutiny over their nutritional value. Now the nation’s largest group of pediatricians is strongly recommending that they not be consumed by children. “Rigorous review and analysis of the literature reveal that caffeine and other stimulant...

Jan 31, 2011

What's the Difference Between Brown and White Eggs?

I have plans to cook an egg quiche thing and enough cinnamon rolls for 10 people this weekend, so I'm going to need a lot of eggs. Normally I'm not too discerning with my egg selection -- they all scramble just as well to me. But, standing in the grocery...

Jan 31, 2011

The Bitter Side of Diet Soda: Strokes

Drinking diet soda is associated with a 50-percent increase in stroke risk, according to a study presented earlier this month at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference in Los Angeles. Not surprisingly, reaction to the news among dieters has been disparaging and defensive, as each person cycles through the...

Dec 31, 2010

Nutrition Labels on Menus Don’t Alter Habits

Letting consumers know exactly how many calories are in their food might do little to change their eating habits, a new study suggests. The results show that, in the case of one fast-food chain in Washington, adding nutritional information to menus did not change consumer behavior after one year. The...

Nov 30, 2012

Family Meals Help Kids Eat More Fruit & Veggies

One or two family meals a week may help kids eat more fruits and vegetables, a new study suggests. In the U.K. study, children whose families always ate meals together consumed 4.4 ounces (1.5 portions) more fruits and vegetables a day compared with children whose families never ate together. And...

Oct 31, 2012

Thanksgiving Tips: Keep Leftovers Safe

The turkey is picked-over, the cranberries are nearly gone, and everyone's leaning back from the table loosening their belts. But as Thanksgiving dinner ends, the cook has one more food-safety task to tend to. That would be storing the leftovers. Let's face it: We all cook more than we need...

Jan 31, 2012

7 Sweet Facts About Chocolate

Chocolate hearts have long been a staple of Valentine's Day, and while the best part of the delectable may be its heart-warming taste, many steps and technologies are involved in bringing that yummy to your tummy. Here are 7 facts about chocolate's journey from tree to heart box. 1. Chocolate...

Jan 31, 2012

Scientist Cooks Up a Meatless Product for Meat Lovers

VANCOUVER — Meat lovers may not need to wait for the price of $250,000 test-tube hamburgers to drop. A researcher says that he has created a vegetable-based product capable of winning over the taste buds and wallets of meat and dairy lovers. Such success could singlehandedly help satiate the world’s...

Dec 31, 2011

Can an Avocado Pit Really Keep Guacamole From Turning Brown?

Few people know that the avocado is an ecological anachronism, that it most likely evolved specifically to entice the tastes and the large gullet of the now-extinct giant ground sloth. Another fun piece of avocado trivia: The name of the tropical fruit can be traced all the way back to...

Sep 30, 2013

Excessive Added Sugar Clogs Americans' Diets (Infographic)

Sugar contains calories but zero nutrients (such as vitamins and minerals). Sugar is naturally occurring in dairy products (lactose) and fruits (fructose), but many processed foods and beverages contain added sugar in excessive amounts. One sugar cube is equivalent to 1 teaspoon of granular sugar or 4 grams. It contains...